Today we’d like to introduce you to Mardy Sears.
Hi Mardy, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am a book artist working with both image and text. I often think in book format but I enjoy many ways of making such as printmaking, ceramics and textiles.
I think I have always thought of myself as an artist. I was never the smartest kid in class, I was never very good at sports, but drawing was something I could do well. While growing up my mother was a creative person. She attended Skidmore College and majored in Art but never graduated. When I was young, she made stained glass objects at a makeshift studio on the kitchen counter, she also knitted and embroidered. When I told my parents that I wanted to major in art in college, they were supportive. Most of my art friends were encouraged to become graphic designers so they could get a job after graduation. I always appreciated the fact that my parents never did that. They trusted me or at least saw the value in pursuing my love of art.
My first year of college was spent at a state university where I took a foundation course in art. My best friend was attending The School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and after my first visit to see her, I realized that this was the place for me. The students at SMFA had so much freedom, and it was in the city which is where I wanted to be. I didn’t realize what I was asking for when I told my parents I wanted to transfer. It was much more expensive than the state school, but they made it happen somehow. I remember someone made a drawing of a swarm of flies on the ceiling in the basement, and that struck me as something wonderful. The school had a pass/fail system with review boards at the end of each semester. We were expected to present our work from all our classes to be reviewed by two faculty (not necessarily our teachers) and two students. It was a very stressful process. I remember one faculty member who taught a trompe l’oeil class wrote ‘Mardy refuses to acknowledge the hierarchy of fine art over craft.’ I made many resist dyed tapestries on cotton fabric and I considered them equal to drawing, painting, printmaking, etc. His statement made me quite mad at the time, but now I look back and think yes, I still feel that way. I continue to work with paper, thread, fabric, ceramic, wood and found objects. The world is our oyster; why would we ever want to limit ourselves?
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
It certainly has its ups and downs. After graduating from the Museum School, I was invited to exhibit in a group show at a beautiful bank gallery in downtown Boston. My work was reviewed and featured in color on the front page of the Boston Globe Arts section. I was young and I thought I had made it. I was so sure that good things would follow but then nothing came along. I didn’t know how the system worked and that becoming a successful artist is a hustle. I thought interested people would come to me, but they didn’t. A little later I tried to show my work to some of the best galleries on Newberry Street in Boston. I walked in cold, with no introduction, and I was summarily dismissed. It was very, very hard and demeaning so I gave up for quite a while. I made my work in isolation and I didn’t show it to anyone for a long time. Over the past few decades, I have had my successes and my quiet years. Even during dry spells, I knew I would continue to make work because it’s a big part of how I function. I think my life in art has grown steadily over the years and in some ways, I have been very lucky. In not being tied to a gallery or success, I have had the freedom to do what I want to do without the pressure to sell. I also have a job in the arts, so success for me has never been tied in with having to make money.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I work five days a week as a Senior Conservation Technician in Paper at the Art Institute of Chicago. I believe that working with such an amazing collection of works on paper informs my work as an artist. My own work as a printmaker and artist bookmaker is connected to the past. Worn and aged surfaces such as joined sheets of paper, and early book structures which may be sewn, mended, and stained, are evident in the objects I make. My visual language includes images of animals; primarily birds and sea creatures that have a wide variety of forms and textures. These animals tell stories of humanity and connect our everyday lives to the environment we live in. Nearly every drawing or print incorporates text and poetry, making the artist book a natural format to combine images with words.
Each year since 2018 (except for 2020!) I have spent time at Friday Harbor Labs on San Juan Island in Washington State. I apply annually for a Whiteley Fellowship to work in the MacFarlane Art Studio for two to three weeks in the summer. My husband collaborates with marine biologists studying octopuses at University of Washington and we go as a family. This is a creative environment on the Salish Sea where I can be in nature and have access to marine biology labs. The first time I went as a guest with my husband. I was able to visit the octopuses and help feed them. I held a small crab in my fingers and a red octopus rose up and latched on – wrapping its tentacles around my hand. I think I took over 200 photos of this octopus and began making drawings. This is the place I go to rejuvenate my creativity and come up with inspiration for the entire year. I love spending time with scientists and listening to conversations over dinner about research. I love this place where science and art intersect.
I think the one thing that sets me apart as an artist is my ability to work in many different forms. I believe I have a voice that carries through my work even when working in many mediums. I began working in clay again (for the first time since high school) about five years ago. I take a perpetual open studio class where I can get my fingers into clay and play. This work helps me generate ideas that carry over into all my other work. As an example, I have been thinking a lot about owls since seeing a dead owl on the side of the highway. I have made a porcelain sculpture of the dead owl, a drawing of an owl in flight on the side of a large vase, and a carved block for printing tea towels for the holidays. I love making art that is not only enjoyed as an object in a gallery but is also utilitarian. I think some ideas don’t work in one medium and perhaps I also get bored doing one thing. I often think the idea tells you how it needs to be expressed and I’m open to that.
What were you like growing up?
I grew up in a middle-class family on a dead-end road in the suburbs. There was a field at the end of the road and conservation land behind the houses across the street. I spent a lot of time in the woods, climbing trees, swimming, and picking wildflowers. I was a quiet introvert with glasses and a skinny little thing with very little physical coordination, but I could draw! I always loved to draw and make up stories. Most of my report cards in grade school say Mardy is in a world of her own or Mardy is often staring out of the window.
When I was in fifth grade, I was given the chance to go to an overnight nature camp. Two women came to my house to interview me and find out if I was a good fit. One showed up in high heels, but I proceeded to take them on a hike through the conservation land to my favorite places. Needless to say, the woman in high heels had a very hard time, especially when I led them through a climb up the ‘creepy crevice,’ but I was awarded the scholarship!
Contact Info:
- Website: mardysears.com
- Instagram: mardy_searsart
Image Credits
Mardy Sears
Jane Pierce
